This article is brought to you by bet365.
The Calgary Flames closed out their four game homestand on a snowy Saturday afternoon against the Minnesota Wild. The proceedings weren’t high on animosity or excitement, but there was a decent amount of action. The Flames spotted themselves a two-goal third period lead, but the Wild battled back to force overtime.
In a game that required a shootout, the Flames grinded out a 4-3 victory.
The rundown
The Flames spent much of the first chunk of this game on their heels, as the Wild did a nice job of maintaining possession and the Flames made a few whiffs on attempted zone clearances. The Flames managed to keep play to the outside, though, and got some nice stops from Dan Vladar.
Late in the first period, the Flames opened the scoring on the tail-end of a nice cycling sequence from the fourth line. Eventually the puck was sent to the point, where Daniil Miromanov’s shot was deflected by Kevin Rooney past Filip Gustavsson to give the Flames a 1-0 lead.
But 63 seconds later, the Wild tied things up. Matt Boldy stripped a puck from Rasmus Andersson in the neutral zone and went in on an odd-man rush. He fed a one-timer pass to Marcus Johansson, whose shot went off Vladar’s arm and into the net to tie the game at 1-1.
First period shots were 8-8. Via Natural Stat Trick, five-on-five scoring chances were 8-6 Flames (high-dangers were 3-2 Flames).
The second period was more of the same, with both teams checking well and high-octane scoring chances at a premium.
The Flames managed to cash in on a late power play to take the lead, though. With Jakub Lauko in the box for goalie interference, the second power play unit lit the lamp after the initial group couldn’t generate a ton. Nazem Kadri fired a shot towards the slot area from the side boards, leading to a nice redirect in the slot from Martin Pospisil past Gustavsson to make it 2-1 for the home side.
Second period shots were 11-3. Five-on-five scoring chances were 6-5 Flames (high-dangers were 4-3 Flames).
With Ryan Hartman in the box for high-sticking, the Flames scored again early in the third period – their second man advantage goal of the afternoon. This time, in the closing moments of the power play, Connor Zary fed the puck to Yegor Sharangovich in the slot, and Sharangovich blasted the puck past Gustavsson to give the home side a 3-1 lead.
The Wild pushed back on a power play of their own, though. With Kevin Rooney serving a minor, Brock Faber blasted a shot off the post and past Vladar to cut the Flames’ lead to 3-2.
The Wild pulled Gustavsson for the extra attacker and they kept pressing. With 34.2 seconds left in regulation, after some pressure from the visitors, Marco Rossi beat Vladar in close to tie the game at 3-3.
Third period shots were 10-9 Wild. Five-on-five scoring chances were 7-7 (high-dangers were 2-1 Wild).
This game required overtime. Both teams had some good chances, including a superb stop by Gustavsson on Sharangovich on a redirect.
In the shootout, Justin Kirkland and Rasmus Andersson scored for the Flames, while Frederick Gaudreau scored for the Wild. The Flames won this game by a 4-3 score.
Why the Flames won (in a shootout)
The Flames didn’t play a perfect 60 minutes of hockey, and they seemed to let the Wild back in late in the game, but this was another good example of Flames Hockey. They did what they could to force the Wild to play their preferred style of game, and did a nice job keeping Minnesota to the outside, minimizing secondary scoring chances, and making hay when they had special teams opportunities. Add in a couple pieces of individual execution in the shootout, and that was enough to grab two points.
Red Warrior
A lot of players in black jerseys had strong outings. Let’s give shout-outs to Matt Coronato, who looked dangerous all afternoon, and Yegor Sharangovich, who scored his second power play goal in as many games. Dan Vladar also looked strong when called upon.
Turning point
Pospisil’s power play goal late in the second period gave the Flames a lead. Sharangovich’s power play goal early in the third period gave the Flames a brief bit of insurance. And Andersson’s shootout marker determined this one.
This and that
This was Dan Vladar’s first start since last Tuesday. It was also Joel Hanley’s first appearance in a game since Oct. 28.
The Wild were without leading scorer Kirill Kaprizov due to injury.
Up next
The Flames (12-6-3) are headed east for a hectic four game road trip. First up? The Ottawa Senators, who the Flames visit on Monday night!
